“I want to surprise her” - Mayssa Bastos says she’ll exploit the flaws she found in Danielle Kelly’s game in first world title defense

ONE atomweight submission grappling world champion Mayssa Bastos goes for a second straight victory over former divisional queen Danielle Kelly in their rematch this week. She intends to do it with a game plan augmented by the lessons she learned in their first encounter.

The grappling aces mix it up in their title rematch at ONE Fight Night 26 on Dec. 6 at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. It comes on the heels of their first showdown in August, where the Brazilian seized the atomweight submission gold by decision to become the new world champion.

While she came away with the championship belt, Bastos shared she learned new things about the game of Kelly that she was not aware of previously. She have studied them since and now looks to incorporate the lessons in her game plan for their rematch.

She told ONE Championship in an interview:

"Studying our last fight I saw that she has some gaps in her game. At the moment I'm not going to say what those gaps are because I want to surprise her in the fight."

In their first encounter, Mayssa Bastos engaged Kelly in a spirited back-and-forth in their 10-minute title clash. She, however, managed to gain more ground late in the contest, including securing a belly-dow hook, that greatly padded his push in earning the nod of the judges in the scorecards.

Bastos-Kelly II will be aired live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

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Mayssa Bastos believes rematch with Danielle Kelly should be easier than their first meeting

While she is not being complacent, Mayssa Bastos believes her title rematch with Danielle Kelly at ONE Fight Night 26 on Dec. 6 should be easier because she already has a better understanding of her opponent.

The 27-year-old Art of Jiu-Jitsu Academy conveyed this in an interview with ONE Championship, highlighting how, unlike in their previous encounter in August, where she had to stretch back to familiarize herself with a first-time opponent, this time it is more of building on what she had learned from their first encounter.

Bastos said:

"I think so, on the other hand, since we know each other better. It could be a more studied fight. But on the other hand it could be easier, because I've already fought against her."

Apart from retaining the ONE atomweight submission grappling world title, Mayssa Bastos is gunning for a win at ONE Fight Night 26 to extend his undefeated run in the promotion, which currently stands at 2-0.